Not Supposed to Feel This Way
by E. Limberg
Summary: Kate is attacked in her home because of a case she is working on.  Castle feels bad and tries to take care of her.  Can spending so much time together make them confront their feelings for one another?  Minor spoilers for Knockdown.
1. Nikki Bound

**Not Supposed to Feel This Way**

**Chapter 1: Nikki Bound**

Beckett is seated on her couch, pouring over the case file. Montgomery had forced her and her team to take a break, and she couldn't argue with him. On her way out, she had grabbed the case file, hoping that she could find some sort of lead for them to follow up the next day. Her phone vibrates, and she picks it up to see who had texted her. She smiles when she sees his name and opens the text: _You still up?_

_Yes,_ she replies.

Moments later her phone vibrates again: _Can I come over?_

She sighs and hesitates before responding. Of course she wanted him to come, but it probably isn't best for the partnership; they had just gotten back to normal after he left for the summer, but the new information in her mother's case had made their relationship rocky again.

He has sent another text before she can decide_: I know you took that case file. Let me come over, and we can talk things out and maybe come up with something that will help us._

_Okay, _she agrees.

_Be there in twenty,_ he writes. She smiles again; she really does like him, but she's not sure she could handle a relationship with him. All the attention and fame and money were just too much for her; plus there was the issue of his playboy appearance. Sure, she had gotten to know him really well over the past couple years, and he was really sweet and caring but she just didn't want to risk everything.

After their kiss to disguise themselves on the stakeout for her mother's killer, he had been really understanding. He made more attempts at physical contact when no one was paying attention to them, trying to let her know he was there if she needed him. But he had never tried to pressure her into a relationship, even when she and Doctor Motorcycle-Boy, as Castle called him, had broken up; he had just been there, making sure she knew that she could count on him.

Kate is brought out of her thoughts by a sound outside her door. With a glance at her watch, she knows it could not possibly be Castle; his last text had come just five minutes ago. Cautiously she stands, trying to silently make her way over to her bedroom where she had left her gun after changing from work.

Before she even gets halfway across the room, her apartment door is kicked in. She whips around to see what is going on and finds two figures in all black with ski masks on standing in the doorway. One is pointing a gun at her, and she can see a knife clutched in the second man's hand by his side.

"What do you want?" she asks cautiously, trying to slowly edge backward closer to her bedroom, hoping she could eventually make a dash for it.

"You're working on the murder of Sara Moore, the daughter of billionaire Matthew Moore?" the one with the gun asks.

"Yes."

"Forget about that case."

"Who hired you?"

"It doesn't matter. You'll never touch the person who murdered her."

"Obviously he thinks otherwise, or you wouldn't be here right now," Kate takes a step backward.

"Don't move, or you'll regret it," the second man yells, having noticed her movement.

"If you give me his name, I can make you a deal. Minimal sentencing for breaking and entering and assault just for his name."

"No," the first man says. "We cannot give you that information. And you'll never find us either."

The second man steps forward and looks through the papers she had spread out on her couch. "Looks like it's all right here."

"Then grab them and let's get out of here before someone finds us."

As the knife-wielding man collects the papers from the file, her cell phone, lying on the couch next to the file, vibrates again. "Who's Castle?"

"Richard Castle? The author?" the first masked man turns his attention back to her. "Wait, you're Nikki Heat?"

Kate ignores him, hoping that something had come up and Castle would no longer be coming.

"Says he's stopping to pick up some food on his way over, and he'll be here in twenty minutes," the second man smiles evilly at her, dropping her phone back onto the couch. "Maybe we should give him a surprise we he comes."

Her heart starts racing at the thought of them doing anything to hurt Castle. "You have what you came for. Go before you're trapped."

"Actually, we were told to threaten you to make sure you didn't keep pursuing this case. So how would you feel if we hurt your boyfriend?" They both start to edge closer to her.

In response to their actions, she starts to back up, "He's not my boyfriend." Her back hits a wall, and she realizes she is cornered as they draw closer to her; she couldn't possibly escape both a knife and a gun and come out unscathed so she'll just have to do what they say and hope they'll be gone before Castle shows up.

"Either way I'm sure he doesn't want to see his muse harmed," he presses the gun against her side. "You'll cooperate with us, or we'll wait here and shoot your little writer pal. Go it?"

She nods, looking from one to the other. "Whatever you want."

The second man pulls a black backpack from his back, shoving the case file into it and taking out a roll of duct tape. He tucks his knife into the waist band of his pants so that he could reach it easily if he needs it and starts to rip off a piece of the tape.

Kate flinches as his fingers brush against her skin when he puts the piece of tape over her mouth. The barrel of the gun presses further into her side because of her involuntary movement.

"Hold your arms out." She stares for a moment before putting her arms out in front of her. He starts to bind her forearms together, duct taped wrapped around them from her fingertips to just above her elbows. When that is done, he bends her elbows, drawing her arms in to her chest, and starts to wrap the duct tape around her whole upper body, immobilizing her arms.

As he starts to tape her legs together, her phone vibrates once again. Keeping the gun pointing at her, the masked man goes to get her phone. "Hurry it up. We've got five minutes."

She begins to panic, hoping some unknown force would prevent him from arriving until these two had left; she wouldn't be able to stop the guilt from taking over if something were to happen to him.

"She's not getting away," the man steps back to admire his work. "How should we leave her?"

The gun man steps closer to her, his gun now at his side as he is satisfied that she can't do anything to stop them. He studies her for a long moment, and all she wants is for him to turn around and leave so Castle won't get hurt. "Do yourself some good, Nikki Heat, and don't come looking for us or the man that killed Sara Moore. Or next time you and your shadow won't be so lucky."

Before she can react to this, he has struck her over the head with his gun. Unable to stop herself, she falls backward, hitting her head on the wall behind her. Everything turns black.

**A/N: So I think I wrote most of this a couple weekends ago. I was bored after midterms and found a way to entertain myself. It's got fifteen chapters. I'll try to post again Monday or Tuesday. Please review and tell me what you think so far. Thanks.**


	2. Worried Writer

**Chapter 2: Worried Writer**

"Kate?" Castle calls worriedly, stepping through the wide open doorway into her apartment. Looking frantically around the room, he spies her lying on the ground, silver encircling her body. He rushes over to her, "Kate!"

Her eyes are closed, and her mouth is sealed shut by the tape. He feels her neck for her pulse and is immensely relieved to find that her heart is still beating, though somewhat slower than it should be. As gently as he can, he peels the tape from her mouth. "Kate, wake up," he lightly hits her cheek, hoping she wasn't seriously hurt.

After a few moments, her eyelids flicker. She blinks rapidly, the lights bright and her vision blurry from the trauma to her head. "Castle?"

"Yeah, it's me. You're okay, Kate," he says, relieved as he tries to help her sit up. She closes her eyes, suddenly dizzy. "What happened?"

"I don't know. There were two men… in masks. They wanted… information about the case we're working on. What was her name?"

"Sara Moore," he supplies.

She looks at him for a long moment, "Yeah. And they took the file. And then they duct taped me and said I should just forget about solving her murder."

"Let me get this tape off of you," he says, trying to peel the tape away from her skin.

"Go get a knife."

He complies and then returns to her, looking uncertainly from the tape to the knife. "I don't want to hurt you."

"You won't, Castle. And if you do, I know it's just an accident, and I'll forgive you. Just get this stuff off of me."

Rick looks up at her face before starting to slice the tape around her upper body. Upon pulling that away, he finds a second layer covering her forearms. His hands shake a little as he tries to cut the tape between her arms. She winces, letting out a soft gasp. "Kate, I'm so sorry," he sets the knife aside and looks up to meet her eyes, but they are closed.

"It's fine." He tries to pull the tape from her bare forearms gently, but it can't be done. "Just rip it off."

After an uncertain look at her face, he does as she asks. "How did this happen? Why didn't you try to fight them off?"

"They had guns and knives. And… they threatened to hurt you if I tried anything."

"And how did you end up unconscious? Did you try to move after they left and fall over?" he watches a drop of blood trail down her arm.

"I honestly don't know. One minute I was standing there staring at him and the next thing I remember is seeing your face above me."

"Do you… want to free your legs and I'll go get something for that cut?"

She looks over at him and hesitates, biting her lip. "Actually, Castle… my vision is a little blurry right now so you'd better do it."

"Okay," he says, leaning down to cut her legs free of the tape and trying not to think about her never being able to see properly again.

"I can pull the tape off. First aid stuff is in my bathroom."

He treats the cut he had made on her forearm, covering it with a piece of gauze as it was a little too long for a band-aid. "I'm going to call Montgomery, okay?"

"Yeah, I guess we'd better tell him about this."

"You want to move up onto the couch?"

Before she can respond, her phone starts to ring. Castle retrieves it and answers upon seeing that it is Montgomery. "Captain, we have a problem. Beckett was attacked, and she doesn't seem right." He is surprised to find that she does not protest at this statement, but the captain starts to talk, and he can't dwell on this for long. When he hangs up, he sinks down beside her on the ground. "Two masked men broke into the precinct tonight. They stole everything on the white board and broke into evidence lock-up to get everything we had for this case."

"The same two that got me?"

"Probably not since they couldn't have been attacking you and raiding the precinct at the same time."

"Was anyone hurt?"

"A couple minor scrapes and bruises. Montgomery's sending an ambulance over for you."

"I don't need to go to the hospital."

"Yes, you do."

"Do not. I'll be fine in a couple hours," she tries to stand up, but she ends up toppling over into his lap.

Before she can move off of him, he grabs her, "You're bleeding, Kate."

She reaches up to touch the top of her head, wincing as she does so, and looks at the sticky red liquid on her hand. "I hit my head, Castle. Obviously I'm going to be bleeding."

"There's nothing on the wall or the floor for you to hit your head on that would cut you open. They must've hit you over the head with something."

"I've already told you I don't remember."

"You probably have a concussion."

"Do not. I just hit my head."

Worried, he studies her face, "Kate, that's how you get a concussion."

"I just can't concentrate right now, Castle. My head feels like it's going to explode from all of this pain."

"Why did I have to stop for food? If I hadn't, I could've gotten here before they hurt you. Now you're going to have brain damage or die or something, and it's all my fault."

"I'm not going to die."

He opens his mouth to speak again, but the paramedics rush inside her apartment. He is shoved aside as they begin to examine her and ask her questions about what had happened. While they are busy, he takes the bag of Chinese food that he had thrown on her couch upon entering her apartment to the fridge and washes his hands to get rid of the blood and duct tape adhesive on them.

"I hate hospitals, and I'm not going with you," Beckett yells stubbornly.

"Detective, you need treatment. We need to make sure that you didn't suffer any internal damage when you hit your head."

"I'm fine."

Castle walks back into the room and sees the paramedics holding her steady as she stood; clearly she wasn't fine. They look at him for help. "Kate…" he slowly walks over to them. "Please do this for me. You need to take care of yourself. Let them make sure that you're actually going to be fine."

"You'll go with me?" she asks timidly, looking up to meet his eyes.

"Of course."

**A/N: You guys sent so many reviews so I couldn't say no to updating today. Glad for all of the feedback on the first chapter. Maybe you could do the same for the second? Thanks.**


	3. Concussions and Care

**Chapter 3: Concussions and Care**

"I'm going to go insane in here," she looks up at him from the hospital bed.

"You have to stay. It's just one night and then you can leave."

"Then I'm going to insane after that because Montgomery is not going to let me go back to work and I'm going to have to sit at home all day and do I have no idea what."

"You can't go home, Kate. You're place is a crime scene, and the doctor said you can't be alone for the next seventy-two hours."

"Nothing is going to happen to me, Castle."

"You have to stay with somebody once you get out of here. I've got an extra bedroom, plus I work from home."

"I don't know what everyone is so worried about; it's just a few bumps on my head. I just have a headache. My vision is back to normal, and the dizziness is getting better. In a few days, I'll be back to normal."

Ryan, Esposito, and Montgomery all file into her room. "How are you doing, Beckett?"

She simply glares at them; they all knew how much she hated hospitals.

"Forensics is going over your apartment now. Maybe something will turn up on these guys."

"Probably not. They had gloves on," she says.

"So how exactly did this happen?"

"I heard noises outside my door, and I stood up to go and get my gun from the bedroom, but they kicked down the door before I could. One of them had a knife and the other had a gun. They told me we'd never get the guy who killed Sara Moore and took the case file."

"And how'd you end up with a concussion?"

"They decided to tie me up with duct tape, and I guess one of them hit me over the head with something."

"Castle found you? What was he coming over for?" Ryan and Esposito share a grin.

"I was going to go over the case with her to see if we could come up with anything," Castle says, really hoping that they wouldn't tease her about that tonight when she was already angry.

"Okay… so they broke in the precinct to get all of our information and evidence on this case; they clearly don't want us to solve it. But why attack Beckett? The two events happened simultaneous so they must have known that you had the case file on you," Montgomery reasons.

"Or she's the lead detective on the case and they wanted to threaten her so she wouldn't continue to look for the killer," the writer offers.

"Either way you've got three days sick leave, Beckett. You go anywhere near the precinct before those three days are up, and I will fire you," the captain threatens her, knowing that it was the only way to get her to take care of herself. "When you come back, you will be on desk duty until you get a doctor's approval to be back in the field."

"Sir, I have to find him. He thinks he can get away with this, and we have to stop him," she starts to argue.

"Save it. Ryan and Esposito and the other detectives can handle it. Your job is to rest and get better."

"Fine," she sighs.

They all turn to the door when Lanie opens it. "I was just talking to your doctor."

"I'm fine, Lanie."

"You've got two pretty good bumps on your head and a pretty severe concussion. You're lucky there's no broken bones or swelling."

"Okay, maybe I'm not so fine right now. But I will be; I'm not dying or anything."

Lanie glares at her, "The doctor said you're not to be alone for three days. I assume Castle's already asked you to stay with him, but I've got an extra room too so if you'd rather stay with me, you're welcome to."

"I'd rather not come between you and your boyfriend," the detective glances at Esposito before looking back at her friend.

The ME doesn't give anything away, "Okay. Well, a nurse should be in shortly. They're going to give you something to help with the headache and make you sleep. I'll stop by in the morning before you're discharged with an overnight bag for you."

"Thanks. You guys don't have to stay here with me. Just… keep me in the loop with the case, and I'll see you in a few days."

Her four coworkers bid the two goodbye and wish her a speedy recovery. Once they are all gone, Castle takes a seat beside her bed. "So, Detective, what can I do for you?"

"You don't have to stay, Castle. Your mother and daughter are probably worried about you."

"I called home while they were doing all their fancy scans on you; they know about the situation and don't expect me home tonight."

"Still… you don't have to stay. They're going to knock me out so I won't even know if you're here."

"I said I'd stay, and I always keep my promises, Kate."

She gives him a weak smile, "Thanks."

"It's what friends do."

"You're a good friend, Castle," she reaches out to take his hand, which had been resting on the blankets beside hers.

A nurse comes in with a syringe. "Don't fight the drowsiness. Sleeping will help your head feel better," she says, injecting the contents of the syringe into Beckett's IV.

"Didn't you say you had writing to get done tonight, Castle?"

"Not had to… more like should have gotten done," he amends, trying not to make her feel guilty. "And I got stuck. That's why texted you to see if I could come over."

"So are you going to give Nikki a concussion in the next book?"

"Probably not. But maybe I'll have something happen to her, not too serious of course, but enough to make Rook worry about her."

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you tonight. All I could think about was making sure they got out of my apartment before you showed up."

"It's fine. I mean, we've been working together for over two years, and this is the first time you've been hurt so… we're doing pretty good."

"Are you forgetting my apartment blowing up last year?"

"You didn't have to go to the hospital then."

"They wanted me to, but I hate hospitals."

"So I've heard."

"Can you tell me a story, Rick?" she turns her head to look at him.

"What would you like to hear about?" he smiles.

"Whatever you want to tell me about," she answers, yawning. "I can feel it making me sleepy."

"Well, there's this one story I used to tell Alexis when she was little. I always wanted to make up new bedtime stories for her, but she always wanted to hear the same one."

"Let's hear it then."

Castle begins the story, and she falls asleep a couple minutes in. He continues it, reminiscing in his daughter's childhood now that she is too grown up for bedtime stories, as he watches his muse sleep, captivated by her.

**A/N: So... you all are very enthusiastic about this story. Which good... but I think some of you might be on the verge of obsessed. And lucky for those people, I'm extremely bored right now and hoping that lab will be cancelled in the morning because of the weather. Although I really have no idea what I would do with myself all day if classes were cancelled... And for the record, I've never had a concussion and I'm not a medical professional so I don't really know what happens, but hopefully what little research I did helped to make this more accurate. Thanks again.**


	4. Dizzy and Hurting

**Chapter 4: Dizzy and Hurting**

Castle holds the door of his loft open for her, "Mother and Alexis wished they could be here, but school and work took precedence."

"It's okay."

He sets her bag down before helping her remove her jacket. "So I was thinking… the guest bedroom is on the second floor. I thought… I'd take that and you could take my room so you wouldn't have to deal with the stairs."

"Stairs are fine, Castle."

"No, they're not. You're leaning on me an awful lot when you walk, and I don't want you to fall down the stairs if you have a dizzy spell and I'm not there to help you."

"The dizziness will go away when my head starts to hurt less. And I'll only be here a couple days; I can manage."

"You're staying in my room," he says firmly.

"Fine."

"You didn't eat much of your breakfast this morning. I know hospital food sucks. You want me to make you something?"

"Can I take a shower first?"

"I don't know, Kate. I really don't want you to fall in the shower and hit your head again."

"A bath then?"

"You could still fall and hit your head."

"Castle, I'm not going three days without bathing."

"Okay, you can take a bath," he concedes. He helps her to his bathroom, bringing her bag of clothes for her and getting out a clean towel. "Just… try to be careful and yell if you need anything."

A half an hour later Beckett emerges from the bathroom. She freezes in the doorway, leaning against the wall for support. "Castle?"

He looks up at her from his position against the wall by the door, his computer in his lap. "Oh… hey. Feel better?"

"…Not really. What are you doing?"

"Writing."

"I mean why are you sitting outside the bathroom?"

"I wanted to be close in case something happened."

"I don't know whether to think you're sweet or creepy."

"Sorry for being creepy," he gives her a small smile as he stands. "So breakfast?"

"You don't have to go to a lot of trouble, Castle. Toast is fine with me."

"It's really not too much trouble to make you breakfast, Kate," he offers her a hand.

She stares at his hand for a moment, "Look, Castle, I appreciate all your help, I really do. But I need to do some things on my own. Like walk to the kitchen."

"Okay," he says, trying not to take this personally. He doesn't want her to hurt herself even more, but he knows that she needs to feel independent.

"Thanks."

With one last look at her, he heads out of the room to make her some food. By the time she makes it to the kitchen, he is already making eggs and the bread is in the toaster. She takes a seat at the island and watches him. Minutes later he slides a plate in front of her. "You want orange juice?" She opens her mouth to protest, but he places a finger to her lips. "The doctor said no coffee; you need to rest, and it'll only keep you up."

"Decaf?"

"Sorry, don't have any."

"Orange juice is fine then," she sighs and picks up her fork.

"I think I'm going to start a group: Coffee Drinkers Anonymous. I'll even sponsor you."

She frowns at him, "I think you're the one who sponsors my coffee drinking to begin with."

"You drank coffee before I started following you."

"Not nearly as much."

"You know, if you get pregnant, I might stop shadowing you; I don't want to listen to you complain when you can't have coffee for nine months."

"I don't even have a boyfriend right now so getting pregnant is a little out of the question at the moment. Unless you're planning on trying something while I'm staying with you…"

"My hands won't wander… unless you ask them to," he flashes her a mischievous smile as he hands her a glass of juice and slides into the seat next to her.

"Don't get your hopes up."

"So what would you like to do today, Detective?"

Kate glares at him, "You're really asking me that?"

"Yes."

"Well, I'd really like to go to work and find these guys. But you heard Montgomery; I can't go in to work."

"What else would you like to do?"

She shrugs, "I don't really care. It's not like I can do much anyway."

"You can use this time to read. There's got to be a book you've always wanted to read and never got around to it. I'm sure I have it; you can spend the next three days reading."

"Really? You want me to sit here and read for three days? That's so… boring."

"Kate, you have to take care of yourself. And I thought you liked to read."

"I do… just not for three whole days."

"You break it up, watch movies or something."

"It still amounts to doing nothing useful," she sighs.

"What do you do with yourself when you have a day off?"

"Catch up on sleep. Run errands. Jog. Read. Doing something with Lanie or Josh… but we're not together anymore."

"Some of those things are out of the question."

"I know."

Castle takes her plate to the sink, "Let's go find you a book." He lets her walk to his office without holding on to her but is close behind her to catch her in case she falls. "See, you're already getting better. A few more days and you'll be ready to go back to work."

"Going back to work won't be that great; I'm stuck on desk duty."

"Only for a little while. Plus, you always say that sometimes the best police work happens in the precinct, not in the field."

"Desk duty isn't fun, even if it is helpful. And especially when you know you can't leave the precinct to follow anything up."

"Yeah, I'm totally not going to continue shadowing you when you get pregnant," he smiles to himself.

She glares at him, "Why do you keep insisting that I'm going to get pregnant?"

"I'm not. I'm just saying that I don't want to be around you when you're pregnant because nine months of this would not be fun."

"Whatever," she rolls her eyes and stops in front of his bookshelf.

"My books are down on that end if you want one of them. The classics are up there. Everything else is by genre." She picks a book at random and pulls it down. "_Pride and Prejudice_, Detective? Mr. Darcy?"

"I haven't read this since high school English."

"You can read the version with zombies. I find it so much more appealing. And Alexis made me buy the movie. You two can watch it together sometime and fawn over Mr. Darcy."

"Fawn?"

"Yes."

She shakes her head, "I'm good without the fawning. But maybe I'll try the zombie version after I read this one."

Rick watches her get settled on the couch in his office before grabbing his laptop and joining her. He starts writing, almost forgetting about her entirely as he immerses himself in the world of Nikki and Rook where things could go as he wants them to in real life. He jumps when she slams her book shut and looks over at her, "I told you it was bad."

"It's not that. I just can't read with this headache," she places a hand on her forehead. "I'm going to go try to nap. See you later."

He watches her go, wanting desperately to console her as Rook is comforting Nikki in his novel.

**A/N: So I got my snow day. I'm pretty sure I did nothing all day. But I did write the first two chapters of a new story, which I hope to continue working on this weekend. I only have like ten more chapter left of Harry Potter, so once that's done I can concentrate solely on writing instead of studying for finals that are coming up in a few weeks. Well, hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Thanks.**


	5. Overly Helpful

**Chapter 5: Overly Helpful**

Kate blinks her eyes open, trying to adjust to the light pouring through the windows. Closing her eyes again, she rolls over so that she is facing away from the windows, but upon doing so, she ends up putting pressure on one of the bumps on her head. She opens her eyes again and this time practically jumps out of the bed in shock; Castle is laying beside her, slowly opening his eyes, her movement having woke him up.

"What the hell are you doing, Castle?" she glares at him.

He backs away slightly, "I just… came in to check on you. And I was so tired and I just thought I'd lay down for a while, rest and keep an eye on you in case you needed anything."

She takes a moment to observe him: he is on top of the covers, his hands by his sides, and he is way over on the edge of the bed. Clearly he had no intentions of trying anything while she was sleeping, and the only reason they were close now was because she had rolled over to get more comfortable before realizing he was beside her. Her face softens, "Sorry I freaked out on you."

"No, I shouldn't have stayed after checking on you."

"It's fine, Castle."

Before he can respond, they both hear the door to the loft open and close. "Alexis is back from school. I'll, uh… leave you alone." The writer stands and heads out the door, pulling it close behind him.

"Dad, how is she?" the teenager asks when he comes into the kitchen.

"She's okay. She's sleeping."

"Were you staring at her, Dad? Because if you were, you have some serious problems. That's creepy and kind of stalkerish."

"I wasn't exactly staring."

"I don't want to know," she says quickly, covering her ears and turning around. She spots the detective coming down the hallway from the bedroom. "Detective Beckett, you're okay," she yells, running toward the detective to hug her.

Castle glances down the hall and sees that his muse is indeed leaving the bedroom. It takes him a moment to realize that his daughter's actions were going to hurt the detective. "Alexis, no," he yells, running after her.

The red-head freezes a foot from Beckett and turns back to her dad, "What?"

"Don't do that."

"Do what? I just wanted to give her a hug."

"She's not exactly stable on her feet right now; the headache is making her kind of dizzy. And she can't hit hurt head again. I just didn't want you to hurt her. Plus, she's not exactly a hug kind of person," he explains.

"You know I'm standing right here, Castle?" Beckett raises an eyebrow at him.

"I'm just trying to protect you."

"Your daughter isn't going to do anything."

Alexis smiles, "So you're okay?"

"I will be in a few days."

"Can I…?" she opens her arms a little to indicate what she wanted. The detective gives her a small smile and nods. Alexis envelops her in a hug, trying not to press too hard. "I'm not hurting you, am I?"

"No, it's mainly my head. I just have a few bruises from when I fell over."

The teenager pulls back, "Can I get you anything?"

"I was just going to get water and some pain relievers."

"I'll go get them for you. Dad, you help her to the couch," Alexis hurries off to the kitchen.

Kate closes her eyes, placing a hand on the wall to steady herself. "Castle…"

Worried that she's about to pass out or collapse, he puts his hands on her hips. "Are you okay, Kate?"

She nods and slowly opens her eyes before softly speaking, "Look, I know she's just trying to be helpful, Castle, but… I don't want or need both of you fretting over me. I can't handle it."

"Okay, I'll talk to her," he says gently, knowing that she would go insane without at least some feeling of independence. "You know this would be faster if you'd let me carry you to the couch."

She glares at him, "Castle."

"I know you want to be independent, Kate. But you haven't had any pain medication since we left the hospital. You're head has got to be killing you right now, and you're not going to be able to walk very well. So please let me do this just this one time."

She bites her lip, "Okay, but your hands better not go anywhere they don't belong."

"You have my word," he promises, tucking one arm behind her knees and the other on her back before lifting her up. She immediately puts her arms around his neck, clinging to him with wide eyes. He smiles, "I guess you're not a fan of being carried." She quickly shakes her head. Still smiling, he walks to the living room and gently places her on the couch.

Alexis hands her a glass of water and a bottle of pills. "I'll make dinner tonight. Gram can help me when she gets back."

"You don't have to go to all that trouble, Alexis," Kate says before swallowing a pill.

"It's no trouble. I just have a worksheet to finish up for homework tonight."

"If you're trying to impress our guest, Alexis, you better not let Gram help. Although Kate doesn't cook so I'm sure anything homemade would taste wonderful to her." Had he been standing closer to her, he would have been smacked.

"I'm not trying to impress Detective Beckett, Dad. I just don't want takeout again tonight."

"I can cook," Rick says. "You don't have to. You can keep her entertained because she seemed pretty bored with me."

"I don't need entertained," Kate protests.

"No, but you do need to have someone watching you."

"What am I going to do, roll off the couch and hit my head?"

"Well, no. But knowing you you'll try to get up and fall over or something. And I refuse to be yelled at by Montgomery and everyone for not keeping you safe. And I really don't want to spend more time listening to you complain about not being able to do anything. So for your own good, you need someone here with you."

"I think you'd better handle that job, Dad," Alexis says quickly before heading to the kitchen.

Castle moves to sit beside her on the couch, but she stops him. "What are you doing? Go talk to her."

"About what?" he looks confused.

"You scared her."

"But…"

"I promise I won't move from the couch if you hand me the remote."

He complies, "You move one muscle, and I'll tie you down next time I leave you."

**A/N: So I am completely bored right now... I should probably work on some zoology homework, but I'd rather not. Maybe I'll write some more. I still haven't decided where the story I'm currently writing is going. Or I could read Harry Potter. Or watch Knockdown for the sixth time I think. Anyway, glad you all seem to be enjoying the story. I will try to update again Monday.**


	6. Sleeping Together

**Chapter 6: Sleeping Together**

"Hey, Alexis," Kate smiles as the teenager steps into her father's bedroom. She had been pretty quiet throughout dinner, which made the detective feel like she was intruding on the family.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to… hurt you earlier. It's just…"

"Overwhelming?" she supplies.

"More like difficult, I guess, for me and Dad both. You're so used to being on your own and doing everything for yourself, and we're used to rely on each other for things, especially when we're sick or hurt. We both just want you to get better, and it's difficult for us not to do everything we can to help you."

"It's okay, Alexis. I appreciate everything you and your father are trying to do, but it's just a little… overbearing for me. And I need to do something for myself, to feel like I'm still in control of something when I can't do anything really."

"We'll try to step back a little. Well, I'll try to step back; Dad… probably won't." They share a smile. "So is your head feeling any better?"

"A little. I'm not so dizzy right now so I managed to get changed myself. And I can read a little now without being in so much pain."

"Well… just let me know if you need anything at all. Especially if you feel awkward getting help from Dad sometimes."

"Thanks, I'll let you know."

"Okay, well I'm going to head to bed too. I'm sure Dad will be in shortly to make sure you're set for the night."

"Good night. See you… probably not until after school."

"Good night, Detective," Alexis heads toward the door.

"Alexis?" The teenager turns around. "You can call me Kate."

She smiles, "Good night, Kate."

The detective returns to her book and manages to get through a few more pages before being interrupted again. She looks up from her book to see him standing in the doorway, "Yes, Castle?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to make sure you're set for bed."

"Yes. You're daughter already made sure of that. And for the record, she is very sweet; you're not just biased."

"See? I knew it wasn't just me," he smiles lightly. "So… she wasn't too helpful this time?"

"No, she's fine. I think she understands now, so it'll be fine. You on the other hand…"

"Me? What did I do?" he asks innocently.

"So are you going to be down here every hour to check on me?" she smirks.

"Every half hour. Or fifteen minutes. Or maybe five."

"And when are you going to sleep?"

"Who needs sleep? Other than you obviously."

Kate sighs, "You could just sleep down here."

"With you?" he smiles mischievously.

"…Yes. If you keep your hands to yourself."

"Really?"

"Yes. It'll save you from having to go up and down the stairs all night, and you might actually get some sleep because you'll know whether or not I try to get up."

He frowns, "If my hands can't wander, I won't know if you move."

"Take it or leave it, Castle."

"I'll take it," he slides into the bed next to her before she can change her mind.

"If I feel any part of your body touch me, Castle, I will kill you," she threatens, setting her book on the nightstand.

"You don't have your gun," he points out.

"Do you really think I need my gun to kill you?"

"…No. But please don't strain yourself trying to kill me."

She smiles and turns out the light, "Depends on how much you struggle."

"Would you let me say goodbye to Alexis before you killed me?"

"Nope."

"If you killed me, you'd go to prison. And you promised me you'd take care of Alexis if something happened to me."

"I'd get out of it. Self-defense… you assaulted me while I was sleeping."

"Suddenly I don't want to stay here anymore."

"Just don't touch me, and you'll get through the night just fine."

"Until tomorrow, Kate. Hopefully." He settles down, trying not to wiggle too much so that she wouldn't think he was trying to touch her. Through the darkness he stares at her, relieved when her breathing evens out because now he doesn't have to be quite so careful. He waits for sleep to overtake him, but after twenty minutes of continued staring, he still has not succumb to the tiredness his body feels.

Just as he is about to roll over onto his side so he could not stare at her anymore, she stirs. She rolls into the center of the bed, now laying on her side. Her eyes are still shut tightly, but she is now just inches away from him. He tries not to panic and fights the urge to reach out and touch her. Even more wide awake now, he lays there, not daring to move at all and hoping that she would go back to her side of the bed soon. Not that he minds being so close to her… but it is just so tempting, and he really does want to see his daughter graduate.

Minutes later she stirs again, and he starts to relax. His whole body becomes rigid, however, when he feels her pressed against his side; apparently she had moved closer to him and not back to her own side of the bed. He tries to ignore her, but this proves to be impossible when she moves her head so that it is resting on his chest. He can now very distinctly smell cherries.

"Kate," he whispers softly, really not wanting her to wake up for fear that she'd blame him for their current situation when he hadn't moved from his earlier position at all. She shifts slightly, getting more comfortable next to him, but doesn't wake. Rick sighs softly and decides to just let her sleep, choosing to take whatever punishment she inflicted on him when she woke up in the morning.

He puts his right arm around her waist, holding her close, and takes her right hand in his left on his chest. After pressing his lips against the top of her head as lightly as possible, he finally allows sleep to take over his body.

**A/N: Poor Castle. His dream is coming true but it might get him killed... or cause him a lot of pain. Anyway, I shall try to update Wednesday sometime. And maybe in the meantime I'll write some more because most of my homework is zoology and I can't do it until I have zoology again on Wednesday. Can't wait for the new episode tonight. Hope you all enjoy it.**


	7. Partners

**Chapter 7: Partners**

Beckett begins to stir, and he immediately tenses his body, waiting for whatever blows she dealt him. She blinks open her eyes and is slightly confused for a moment. Her pillow is unnaturally warm and harder than usual. Slowly she lifts her head up and finds Castle under her, staring fearfully up at her. She blinks a few more times, trying to process this. "Castle?"

"Kate… I'm so sorry about this. But… I swear I didn't touch you. Well, not until you started using me as a pillow at least… and I didn't touch you anywhere I shouldn't have. Please don't kill me," Rick rambles, not able to keep the panic from his voice.

She looks down at their intertwined hands on his chest, thinking for a moment before settling back down beside him, her head on his chest, "I'm not going to hurt you, Castle."

"Really?"

"You're safe."

He relaxes his body, relieved that she isn't going to kill him. "So how are you feeling?"

"My head isn't quite as bad today, but I still need something for it."

"You want me to go get your medication?"

"I'd rather you stay here," she says softly.

"Okay… but Alexis is going to be leaving for school soon. I mean, she can get herself ready and all, but we always say goodbye to each other before she goes." The detective tries to scoot back so that he can get up, but he holds her tighter so she can't move. "She won't be leaving for at least fifteen minutes, and you may never let me do this again, Kate, so I'm going to enjoy it for as long as I can."

She smiles to herself at his words, content to let him have a few more moments together, "Can we… doing something today? Outside of your apartment? I just need to get out today, or I might go insane."

"Sure. Did you have anything particular in mind?"

"Not really. Just… out."

"You really don't like my apartment?"

"It's not that. I just… feel a little trapped. And it's not you or Alexis. It's just the situation, the fact that I can't do anything."

"How about the park? We can have a picnic."

"Maybe. Isn't it still a little cold out?"

"We'll check the weather when we get up and decide. If it's too cold for a picnic, we can just take a walk and then go out for lunch."

There is a soft knock on the door before Alexis tentatively opens the door. "Sorry if I woke you guys up," she says, hesitating only slightly at the sight of the two of them together. "I just wanted to say bye to you, Dad. And there's an article in the paper about you guys."

Kate moves back so that he can sit up and hugs his daughter. The red-head smiles at them, "Have a good day."

Castle turns to her, "Did you want to get up or sleep some more?"

"Get up. If you don't mind, I'm going to take a shower."

"Go ahead. I'll find something for breakfast."

"Can you bring me a couple pills first?" she slowly stands up, keeping her hand on the bed for support.

He quickly goes down the hall to fetch a glass of water and her pill bottle. She sways slightly as she takes the medication so he grabs her arm to hold her steady. "You sure you're okay to shower?"

"You're just hoping I'll invite you to join me," she smirks.

"I wouldn't be opposed. But it's more for your safety than my own personal desire."

"I'll be okay."

"If I hear any crashes, I'm coming in."

"You better not be sitting outside the door the whole time."

"I wouldn't have to if you'd just let me in," he counters.

"In your dreams, Castle," she smiles before shutting the bathroom door.

When she comes out, he is just putting plates on the table for them. "Good morning, Detective," he smiles brightly at her. "You seem to be walking better today."

"Yeah, I'm not so dizzy."

"See, you'll be back to work in no time."

She takes a seat and picks up her fork to dig in to the eggs. After he sits down across from her, she asks, "Can I see the paper?"

He looks down at the paper, "I don't know, Beckett."

"Castle," she says in a warning tone.

"You really don't need to read it; it's just speculation about how we might be together because I'm the one who found you when you were attacked the other night."

"So? I still want to read it."

"Really, you don't want to."

"I want to know what was said. What the press says is going to be nothing compared to what people at the precinct will say when I go back. I can handle this."

"Kate… just call your dad and let him know you're alright and forget about this."

"My dad?" she frowns at him.

"Yes. I would imagine he's afraid that you're seriously hurt if he happened to read about it this morning or saw it on the news or something. I know I would be freaking out if I found out my daughter was injured through the media."

She sighs, "I guess you're right. I'll do it after breakfast."

"So… it's going to be a little chilly today. We could go for a walk and then eat lunch somewhere if you wanted. You could invite your dad to join us for lunch," he offers. She bites her lip. "Kate, it's not like I haven't met him."

"Yes, but at that point the press wasn't writing stories about us being together."

"No, but I'm sure it's not the first time he's wondered. I mean, I've written a few… scenes of questionable material about you."

"Nikki, Castle, not me."

"You inspired her."

Kate shakes her head, "Can we not talk about what my dad thinks of your sex scenes?"

"Wait, does your dad even read my books?"

"Not really. But he read _Heat Wave_ since it was based on me."

He looks at her for a long moment before speaking, "Maybe I should talk to him about it, let him know that it wasn't really about you."

"Please, Castle, don't mention it. Or we could just make this easier and not invite him to lunch."

"He's going to want to see you."

"I don't understand what the big deal is. I hit my head. I wasn't anywhere near death. It's not like I was shot and spent weeks in the hospital before regaining consciousness after surgery."

"Wouldn't you be worried about me if our situations were reversed?"

Instead of answering, she asks a question of her own. "And why would anyone, crazy fans aside, attack you?"

"Because I'm your partner."

**A/N: See? Castle is perfectly fine. I, however, am not. I feel like I have a whole bunch of stuff to do... but I can't do most of it right now. And of course I actually have time to work on it now since I don't have the stuff. Yeah, my zoology teacher isn't very good at giving us our stuff. Or grading stuff in a timely manner. Of course once she actually gives us the stuff, I other stuff to work on. And I would totally work on my statistics stuff, but I don't want to go to the library and mess with minitab right now. Sorry for rambling... hopefully you enjoyed this chapter. Next up: Central Park.**


	8. Not Meant to Happen

**Chapter 8: Not Meant to Happen**

Castle glances over at her as they walk through the park. She has her head turned away from him. Before he allows himself time to think and back out, he impulsively grabs her hand. He fights to keep his face forward when she looks over at him questioningly.

"I'm not going to fall over, Castle," she tells him quietly.

"I know. I just wanted to hold your hand."

She squeezes his hand, and for a moment he thinks she is going to break all of the bones in it so that he can't write or touch her anymore. But the pressure stops, and surprisingly she doesn't pull away. "I guess it's time for us to have that talk we've been avoiding."

"What talk?" he tries to play innocent.

Kate turns her face forward, "I highly doubt you've forgotten what happened between us a couple weeks ago."

"We really don't have to talk about this if you don't want to."

"No, we need to do this."

"So… we kissed."

She stops in the middle of the path to turn to face him, "Castle, why did you kiss me?"

"Because… you seemed overwhelmed with the case and… I just thought… that it would help you to know that I'm always going to be here for you, Kate, no matter what." She doesn't react, her gaze trained on the ground. "Why did you kiss me?"

"Because our suspect had just come out and… we looked kind of suspicious so I just acted on impulse to disguise what we were really doing."

"Oh… so you didn't want to?" he tries to keep the hurt from his face.

"I don't know," she whispers.

"You don't know?" he frowns, confused.

"Yes. Things are just so… messed up between us, Castle."

"Messed up?"

"Do you have to repeat everything I say?"

"How are they messed up?" he studies her, trying to read her, but she is closing up again.

"This wasn't supposed to happen."

"What wasn't supposed to happen? Us kissing? Because I am sorry about that; I realize now that it was a stupid idea, and I should've just told you how I was feeling. It just… felt right at the time."

"I wasn't supposed to feel this way about you."

He is not sure what to say to this so he just stands in front of her, staring at her. Her eyes close as she tries not to break down in front of him. "Kate…" he gently says, pressing his free hand against her cheek. She opens her eyes in time to see him leaning forward, and just before their lips meet again, she allows them to flicker closed. He tries to keep the kiss short, not wanting her to feel overwhelmed with everything, but he finds it very hard to pull away from her, especially when she is kissing him back.

"Rick…" she whispers when he finally separates his lips from hers. She pulls her hand from his, and he is afraid he has crossed the line again. Then she puts her arms around him, closing any space between their bodies and burying her face in his neck. Confident now that she is far from angry with him, he wraps his arms around her and leans his cheek against the top of her head. "Ow," she suddenly pulls away from him.

His mistake hits him immediately, "Kate, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just that that's right where he hit me over the head with his gun. It's still sore."

"I'm sorry. I forgot." She frowns, and it takes him a moment to realize that she is looking at something over his shoulder, not him. Just as he is about to turn around and see what it is, she grabs his arm, dragging him along that path. "What's going on?"

"Somebody had a camera."

"Oh… that's not good," he says, now worried that she would be scared away from him. They walk hurriedly on the path until they reach the outskirts of the park. He hails a cab and helps her inside. Once he has given the driver the address of one of their frequent dining spots, he turns all of his attention on her. "Kate… I should've known better. I shouldn't have done that in such a public place."

"It's fine, Castle."

"I'll understand if you hate me for the rest of your life."

"I don't hate you, Castle."

"And if you never want to see me again, I'll go."

Kate takes his hand, "Rick, I never meant to fall in love with you. But I did. And… I want this. It's just a little scary to think about it all."

He stares at her open-mouthed. It takes him a moment to form a coherent thought after her admission. "I didn't mean to fall in love with you either. You were just supposed to be another woman that I spent a couple nights with."

She quickly presses a finger to his lips and gives him a small smile, "Are you sure you want to continue, Castle, because right now you're not doing too well?"

"The more time I spent with you, the more I knew that we could never have just a few nights together. I was so grateful when you started to let me in as a friend instead of just seeing me as some annoying writer who just tried to make your job harder. And now that we've become so close, I know that I could never live without you, Kate. So please, Kate, I want you to be sure about taking this next step forward because I don't want to lose you."

"I'm sure," she leans forward to give him what she intended to be a short and sweet kiss, but he won't let her go that easily. When they pull apart, she smiles, "Only you could find the most unromantic place for us to admit our feelings and make out, Castle."

"Hey, the park wasn't bad. Until they started snapping pictures of us. Which I'm really sorry about. I'll call Paula and Gina, and we can put out a statement, and no one will have to know about this until you're ready to tell them."

"And I think we should just go ahead, face them all now, and get it over with."

"You're sure?" he asks, looking into her eyes.

"Yes."

"Then I'll call Paula and Gina and have then release a statement so everyone knows the truth."

She nods, "Okay. But I want to tell Martha, Alexis, and my dad before this statement is released."

"We'll tell your dad in a few minutes then and my mother and daughter tonight."

**A/N: I almost forgot to update... But now I don't know what to do. Like all my friends are busy with other things tonight. So I guess I will be finishing Harry Potter, possibly doing my sociology paper, and maybe get some writing. And try to convince my mom to come down this weekend because I need my dress fixed for band; it's like a foot too long. So... please tell me what you thought of this chapter.**


	9. Caught Kissing

**Chapter 9: Caught Kissing**

Castle sits down next to her on the couch. She smiles her thanks as he hands her a mug of hot tea. "You doing okay? You don't need more medication?"

"I'm fine," she takes a sip of tea. "How much longer?"

"Alexis should be home shortly. Mother may very well stay out all night and celebrate with her fellow actors… or her new boyfriend." Just as he puts his arm around her shoulders, his phone starts to ring. "Hello, Mother. Yes, she's doing fine."

Kate leans her head against his shoulder, careful not to put any pressure on the bump on the back of her head, and listens while he talks to his mother.

"We had some exciting new for you, but I guess you'll just have to wait," he smiles but this fades at her next words. "How did you know? Pictures? From the park? They're already all over the internet? Don't be surprised if I'm dead when you get home tomorrow. Yes, I love you. Bye, Mother."

"I guess we're pretty popular," she says quietly.

"Yes. Stupid fans."

"I thought you liked your fans."

"I do. Just not when they put private pictures all over the internet. You know, some days I would trade all this in just to be normal, to have people not really care who I am."

"Yes, it is nice not to be recognized everywhere you go."

"I guess those days are over for you too," he presses a kiss to her forehead. "I'm sorry. I never meant for all of this to happen this way."

"It was going to happen sooner or later, Rick, and I'd just assume get it over with. I'm sure in a few weeks or months they won't even remember us."

"Hopefully… until we get married."

"Married?" she looks up at him.

"Yes, that's what normal people do when they love each other. And just because we are now celebrities doesn't mean we can't participate in normal activities like marriage."

"Celebrities also like to participate in normal activities like divorce and extramarital affairs, perhaps even more than normal people do."

"You're worried."

"Yes."

"Kate, I'd never do anything to hurt you. I know that probably doesn't mean much; I've already been married and divorced twice. But you're different, and I really think that everything is going to work out for us."

"I hope so."

"You still don't believe in soul mates, do you?" She shakes her head, her eyes still on his. "Then I'll just have to convince you," he leans in for a kiss, but as soon as their lips meet, the door opens.

They pull away just as Alexis walks into sight. "Hey," she smiles at the two.

"How was your day?" Castle asks.

"Pretty good."

"You had a good time with Ashley tonight?"

"Yes."

"But not too good, right?"

"Dad," she gives him an annoyed look. "I really don't think you should be one to talk. I'm sure you've done far worse than Ashley and I ever have."

"I sure hope so."

The teenager notices her father's hand on the detective's and decides to turn the tables, "So what have you been up to?"

"Nothing much. We went for a walk in the park, had lunch with her dad, hung around here for a while."

"That's all?"

Kate and Rick share a look, "Yes."

"You sure there's not anything you want to tell me? Like why you're holding hands now or why I found you two in bed together this morning?"

"Actually, we do have something to tell you," the detective turns from Castle to his daughter. "Your father and I are together."

"Really? This is so exciting," she rushes over to hug both of them. "I'm so happy for you two. So how did he tell you?" she smiles at Kate and sits down beside her.

"She actually said it first," he butts in.

"No, you kind of did when you kissed me a few weeks ago."

"You kissed? I mean… before now?"

"During her mother's case."

"Oh… that explains your behavior, Dad." At Kate's raised eyebrow, she continues, "He couldn't focus on anything at all; he was distracted and anxious. Gram and I just thought it was because of your mother's case, that it had affected you so it was affecting him too. But I guess it was because he kissed you."

"Probably. And the fact that I kissed him right after he kissed me."

"You did?"

"To keep our cover; the suspect had just come out and spotted us."

"And today?"

"She didn't like it when I tried to hold her hand," Castle grins. "So we tried to talk about it, but… I kissed her again."

"And we were photographed."

"What?" Alexis looks from one to the other. "Who photographed you? The paparazzi were following you guys around?"

"Fans, actually. And Gram's already seen them on the internet."

"And then what?"

He glances at the detective, "Alexis, this all is a little personal. Maybe someday we'll tell you the whole story, like when you're getting married, but… let's leave it for now."

"Sorry," she apologizes to Kate. "Well, congratulations," she smiles once more before heading up the stairs to bed.

He puts his arms around her, "I'm sorry about that. She's just a little… excited."

"It's fine. It's just a little awkward to be talking to your daughter about our relationship. But she probably just wants to know whether it's what she and Ashley went through. I mean, she's still at that point where you think your first love is perfect and everything will work out and you'll be together the rest of your lives. And we both know that it's not very likely."

He sighs, "Maybe it will be for her. Maybe she won't have to go through all of that pain."

"Hopefully."

Rick kisses her again, fully content to let whatever happens between them happen. They are both too immersed in the kiss to hear footsteps coming down the stairs.

"Dad!" Alexis says, standing at the bottom of the stairs in shock.

The two split apart immediately. "I thought you went to bed. What are you doing back down here?" he looks at her while taking the detective's hands to reassure her that it would be okay.

"I was getting a glass of water. And I live here. I should be able to come downstairs without seeing that."

"I think that I should be able to open the front door and not find you and your boyfriend glued together," he counters.

Alexis blushes, "That's different. We don't intend to go any further than that."

Kate remains silent, not wanting to impede on their argument. Rick can't think of anything to say to her remark as he really had no idea whether or not things with he and Kate were going to further than kissing at the moment. Father and daughter glare at each other until Alexis decides to just go upstairs and forget about her glass of water.

"I don't get it," he says softly, turning his attention back to his muse. "She was so excited about us, and she wanted to know how it all happened. And then we kiss and she freaks out."

"I'll talk to her tomorrow, Rick. Let's just go to bed now and get some rest."

"Kate, it's not your responsibility to talk to her."

"I want to."

**A/N: Very exciting day with no homework. My grandparents came to visit because I needed my dress hemmed for my concert Thursday. Now for a three hour rehearsal and dead week. I think most of what I have to do is zoology... can't wait to be done with that class. And study for some quizzes. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter. More Tuesday probably. Thanks.**


	10. Awkwardness

**Chapter 10: Awkwardness**

Kate knocks softly on the red-head's door, "Alexis, I want to talk to you."

"I don't want to talk," the teenager calls through the door.

She opens the door anyway, "Why not?"

Alexis looks up from her book, "Dad sent you up here, didn't he?"

"No, I wanted to come talk to you."

"I have nothing to say."

"Fine, I'll talk then," Kate closes the door and leans against the girl's desk. "I know this is probably awkward for you. I know it would be awkward for me to see my dad kissing another woman. And I'm in no way trying to take your mother's place, Alexis; I would never want to do that, and I'm sorry if it seemed that way to you."

"Kate, this isn't your fault. I'm not mad at you, and I know that you would never try to take my mother's place, especially after your own experience in losing your mother."

"Okay… so what are you angry about then?"

"Dad. He gets angry every time I kiss a guy. And I've only kissed two guys. What's the big deal? I'm not sleeping with them. And that shouldn't really matter anyway because I'm almost eighteen and I can make my own decisions. Besides, I bet he can't even count how many women he's been with."

"Well, you're probably right about the last part. But he's worried about you because he cares; he doesn't want to see you get hurt." Kate smiles, "You know, my dad would always freak out about me kissing guys too. But I'm pretty sure he had more reason to be worried than your dad does."

"So… it's normal? I mean, Ashley's parents never freak out on us, and they're a lot more… modest than Dad is," Alexis sits up and pats the bed beside her.

The detective comes to sit down, "Well, girls generally are weaker and easier to take advantage of, and he just wants to make sure that won't happen to you. Ashley's parents really only have to worry about him; your Dad worries not only about you but also about all those crazy guys out there that could potentially hurt you. Following me around probably doesn't help with the worrying."

"It just gets kind of annoying. But I guess he's allowed to be since he has to do two parents' worth of worrying."

"I'll make you a deal: you don't make out with your boyfriends outside the door for your father to find you, and your father and I won't kiss in front of you."

"It's not that I don't like you guys kissing; I know that you guys are meant to be together. But… I know what kissing leads to. And you're both adults and all so it's perfectly acceptable but it's just… awkward to think about you and Dad like that."

"I'll try to keep your dad in line then."

The teenager smiles, "And I'll try not to give him a reason to freak out about me. But I mean… if you guys want to kiss, it's okay with me. Just… please don't start making out in front of me. Tell me to go somewhere or something so I don't have to see it."

"I think we can do that. So… do you want me to send your dad up so you can talk to him? Or do you want me to talk to him?"

"Um… can you talk to him? For now, at least. My book was just getting exciting before you came in, and I really want to know what happens. I'll come and talk to him in a bit, but… just let him know I'm not angry anymore."

"Sure."

"Are you feeling any better today?"

"The headache's gotten a lot better; I still need the medication in order to relieve the pain so I can concentrate on anything, but hopefully it'll be gone in a few more days."

Alexis nods, "So are you leaving tomorrow?"

"I haven't really talked to your father about that yet. I'm going in to work, but I don't know about afterwards. We aren't really together like that yet so…"

"Well, I like having you here so if that makes it any difference in your decision…"

Kate smiles, "Thanks. And if you ever need anyone to talk to about… anything at all, I'm here."

"Thanks."

"Beckett," Castle yells up the stairs.

"Guess I'd better go before he comes to investigate." When she reaches the top of the stairs, she sees Ryan and Esposito just inside the door. "Hey, what are you guys doing here?"

"It's our weekly videogame party," Ryan smiles. She raises an eyebrow. "Actually, we came to see how you were doing and to update you on the case."

"And?"

"We've talked to everyone related to the case; they all have solid alibis for both break-ins," Esposito informs her.

"That's all you guys have done the past two days? Run down alibis?"

"No, we got security footage from the precinct, obtained images of the two guys that stole everything. But they have masks on so they weren't particularly helpful."

"My place has cameras in the elevator and the lobby."

"We got them. And… the two guys took their masks off in the elevator after attacking you."

"You got a clear shot of their faces?" she asks, nodding to the folder Ryan is holding.

"Yep. Didn't recognize them so we ran them through all the databases and got nothing," he pulls out a photograph and shows it to them.

She studies the photograph. Castle peers over her shoulder, "Hey, I saw those guys." Everyone turns to him. "They were just leaving your building as my taxi was pulling up."

Kate takes a moment to contemplate this before turning back to the detectives, "So what are you doing now?"

"Going back to the original case. If we find who killed Sara Moore, we'll find the guys that attacked you," Esposito reasons.

"Good. I'll be back tomorrow morning to help."

"Don't you have to go in to the doctor to make sure you don't have lasting brain damage?"

"Not for a couple days. And with any luck, he'll give me a note for Montgomery so I can go back in the field."

"One other thing before we go," Ryan smirks and holds up a newspaper.

She grabs it before Castle can and studies the photo of the two of them in the park, then reads the accompanying paragraphs about their relationship. Once she is done, she looks up at them, "Go ahead and say it."

"Say what?" Esposito asks, pretending to be innocent.

"I know you guys have something to say about this."

"Not really. We just wanted to say that it's about time," Ryan smiles.

"And congratulations," his partner adds. "So… we'll see you tomorrow. And be warned, everyone at the precinct has seen this. They were thinking about getting a poster of it made to hang in the break room."

Castle shuts the door behind them and turns to her, "Sorry."

"It's not your fault."

**A/N: Sorry for not updating yesterday... kind of forgot. Anyway, I guess everyone is now aware of their relationship. Don't have much time. Have to go to zoology. I can't wait; only three more days and it's over. Until the final next week. So... I will try to remember to update Friday. Please keep reviewing. Thanks.**


	11. Safety and Comfort

**Chapter 11: Safety and Comfort**

"Stop being creepy, Castle," Beckett says without looking up from her book.

"What?"

"You're being creepy. Stop staring at me."

"Sorry," he apologizes, looking away momentarily before going back to staring.

"Castle, please, it really is creepy," she sets her book down and turns to him. "What's on your mind?"

"Nothing."

"Rick, I know you're thinking about something. Is it Nikki Heat? Because you don't have to stay here; you can go write if you want."

"It's not Nikki."

"Then what? Alexis? Because she's fine now; we've got everything straightened out."

"It's you."

She sighs, "What about me?"

He looks down at his lap, not wanting to say what is on his mind. "It's nothing really. Go back to reading, and I won't stare."

"Castle, just tell me. I won't laugh at you or be angry."

"I want you to move."

"What?"

"To move. To a new apartment."

"Why?"

"Because… Kate, you were attacked in your own apartment, and no one came to investigate. Your neighbors had to have heard something, but they didn't try to help you. You should move someplace better," he tries to defend his position.

"I just moved in six months ago, and I don't really know them too well. I'm always working. And you've worked with me for two years; you should know that people don't really help their neighbors, not in this city."

"You should at least have a doorman, Kate. Then guys like that might not get in."

"Not everyone has your salary, Castle. I had to work with what I had, and I needed to stay close to the precinct."

"I would be willing to pay for it. I mean, I'd ask you to move in with me, but I don't think you'd go for that at this point."

"No," she shakes her head. "It's too soon. But… if we're going to be together, we could just come over here. Then you wouldn't have to worry about me. And if we wanted some privacy, we always have my place to go back to. Or if I need some time to myself, I can go back there."

"I guess… but I'd still feel better if you had a safer place."

"Castle, I just moved last year. I really don't fancy doing it again. And especially since I would actually have to pack my stuff this time. Unless you wanted to get another crazy fan of yours to bomb my apartment."

"No, I'd rather not. Especially if you're in there. I don't think you could get that lucky again."

"My old apartment had a doorman, and I knew my neighbors. But Dunn still got in and put a bomb in my apartment. Things are going to happen, Castle. You can't do anything to stop them; no one can. It's just part of the job," she tries to placate his fears.

"I know that. But I don't like it. I'd be more than happy if you gave up your job, but I know you'd never do that. And I wouldn't want you to, not after spending three days doing absolutely nothing with you while you healed."

"I couldn't take this doing nothing thing, Castle. I need something to keep me busy."

"I know. Just… if you ever don't want to be a detective, I won't… look down on you or anything. You're always going to be extraordinary to me."

She gives him a weak smile, "I appreciate that. But it's not really an option at the moment. It's always a possibility, I guess, but not in the near future."

Castle takes her hand, "Just thought you should know in case the idea ever crosses your mind."

"Look, Castle, it's very sweet of you to offer to do all of this for me. I thank you for trying to take care of me, but I need things to stay the same for right now. Dating you is going to be more than enough for me to handle for a while."

"Are you trying to imply something about me?"

"I'm just saying that I'm not used to everything that comes with being with you. The press, the fans, the money, the attention. It's all just going to be overwhelming for me for a little while, but I'll get used to it. Or at least tolerate it."

"Thanks, Kate. I know this is hard for you because it's like the complete opposite of your lifestyle."

"If it were any other writer, I don't think I'd do it."

"I'll be sure to tell James Patterson to back off at our next poker game then."

She shakes her head at him, "Of course any other writer probably wouldn't date his muse."

"I guess I'm just a little unconventional then."

"Following me around for two years so that you can avoid writing? I don't think other writers would do that. Unless they just couldn't write good stories and were looking for a career change."

"That hurts," he clutches his chest. "Just for that I'm not going to let you use me as a pillow tonight."

"Whatever," she rolls her eyes at him and lays down.

He too lays down, and they remain silent for almost ten minutes. Finally he can't take it any longer, "I was just joking, Kate." When she doesn't reply, he is unsure whether she is asleep or just ignoring him and scoots closer to her.

She turns her head to him, "What are you doing?"

"I was lonely."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"You had no other motive for moving closer?"

"Well… I was hoping maybe we could… cuddle."

Now she is glaring, and he knows she is even though he can't see it in the dark. "Castle?"

"I just thought that with you going back to work tomorrow this might be the last time we do this for a while."

"Weren't you the one arguing that I needed to move someplace safer? And I said it didn't really matter because we'd probably be over here a lot."

"Yes, but I thought you wouldn't stay here for a while. Not until we slept together at least."

"In case you haven't noticed, Castle, this is our third night sleeping together."

"I meant… in the other way."

"Well, if you'd rather I didn't stay over…"

"No, I'm perfectly okay with our sleep overs."

"Good," Kate rests her head on his chest and presses her body against his side. "Night, Castle."

**A/N: Sorry for not updating yesterday. And for not replying to reviews. I will really try to do that this chapter. Hope you enjoyed this. Thanks. More tomorrow maybe.**


	12. An Unwelcome Suggestions

**Chapter 12: An Unwelcome Suggestion**

"You okay, Beckett?" Esposito asks as he comes over to her desk.

"Yeah, this headache just refuses to go away," she puts her head in her hands and closes her eyes. "Paperwork doesn't make it any better."

"Do you need something for it?"

"Castle just went down to the store to get something."

"I know what will help. Or at least they say it does."

Kate looks up at him, "What, Esposito?"

"You know, we all figured it would happen when you stayed with him, but I guess it didn't. Or he just wasn't as good as he says he is."

"What are you talking about?" her frown deepens.

"You and Castle. Maybe you should spend more time in bed together. They say that it helps relieve pain," Esposito smirks at her. "I'm sure Lanie can tell you all about it."

"I'm not going to talk to Lanie about that because I'm pretty sure that even if it didn't help, she would lie and say it did just to try to get Castle and me in bed together."

"So you're not…?"

"No. And I don't think it would help with this headache, Esposito. But I would gladly knock you over the head and give you a concussion so you can test your theory out… if you can even get a girl in bed with you," she glares, and the detective quickly retreats to his own desk.

"What was that about?" Castle asks, setting a bottle of water and some pain medicine in front of her.

"Nothing."

"Fine, don't share with me," he pouts.

She shakes her head at him, takes some medicine, and returns to her paperwork. He busies himself with watching her. Neither of them notice the ME approaching them.

"When were you going to tell me?" she asks, dropping a newspaper in front of the detective.

Both of them jump in shock. "Tell you what?" Kate asks, frowning at the paper. Then she spots the picture from their adventure in the park. "Oh…"

"Please don't tell me you two are ignoring your feelings again," Lanie looks from Beckett to Castle.

"You have nothing to worry about, Lanie," Castle smiles at her. "We've got it all taken care of."

"So you're together?" she looks at Kate, who nods in confirmation. Then she turns back to Castle, "Then I have lots to worry about. You better not hurt her, Castle, or I will kill you. I know how to hide your body so they'll never find you."

"And lucky for me, you just admitted that in a police station full of homicide detectives. If I go missing, they'll know who to question," he grins.

"I'm serious, Castle. One wrong move, one stunt like you pulled last summer, and you're gone."

"I have no intention of hurting her, Lanie. I promise."

"Lanie, please. I have work to do," Kate says, trying to distract her friend.

"I doubt you can get much work with that headache you've still got," she nods to the pill bottle on the desk. "You know, you could really help her out with this headache, Castle."

"What do you mean? I've already gotten her medicine; in a little bit, it'll start to dissipate. I don't really know how else to help her," Castle says, looking from Kate to Lanie.

"Lanie," the detective warns her friend. "Say it and I make sure you and Esposito never have children."

"We don't need children; we're having enough fun with things as they are right now."

"Don't put that idea in his head, Lanie. Please," she is glaring at the ME now.

"Wait… you two haven't…?" Lanie looks from one to the other.

"Castle, can you go get me some more coffee?" Beckett shoves her mug at him.

"Castle, is this true?" the ME asks, deciding he is the weaker link.

He gives Kate a sympathetic look, "We have a more intimate relationship than you and Esposito, but you two are more physically involved than we are."

"Yet you guys were kissing in the middle of Central Park?" Lanie looks skeptical. "Girl, we are going out for dinner, and you are going to give me all of the details. Got it?"

"The usual place?"

"Yes. And Castle?"

"Yes, Lanie," he tries to smile pleasantly despite the fact that he is sure he is about to be threatened again.

"I want you to be a gentleman and sweep her off her feet when she gets home tonight. Take her bed and see if you can help her get rid of the headache."

"Bed? Lanie…"

"Hormones work better than the drugs sometimes, Castle. And I think after all your little escapades you would be very good at this sort of thing."

Castle and Beckett stare after Lanie and Esposito as they get on the elevator for their lunch date. "Kate?" he says softly once the two are gone. "I don't really understand what I'm supposed to do. Or rather how that will help."

"Castle…" she begins but doesn't know what to say.

He places his hand on hers, "We don't have to do anything until you're ready, Kate. Just forget about what Lanie said. I mean, unless you really think it will work and you want to try."

She gives him a small smile of thanks before noticing Montgomery coming toward them and removing her hand from his. "A word, Detective?" he asks, and she nods before standing. "You too, Castle."

They glance at each other before following him to his office. "Sir, if this is about what was in the paper the other day…"

"Castle is not part of the police department; it's none of my business what goes on between the two of you."

"Well, it's true, sir. Just so that you know," Beckett bites her lip nervously.

"I would appreciate it if you two could maintain professional while at work, but quite frankly, I'm very happy for the two of you."

"Thanks," she mumbles. Castle doesn't say anything.

"I actually wanted to know how you're feeling," Montgomery says.

"Okay. I can see fine now, and I'm not dizzy at all so I can walk and everything. I'm almost back to normal."

He turns to the writer, "Castle?"

"She's not lying. But she still has a headache."

"Is that true?"

She nods, "But I'm sure it'll go away in a few days. I'm fine to work."

"Kate, you couldn't concentrate on the file you were reading earlier," Castle inputs, receiving a glare from her.

"Beckett?"

"It's just a little hard to focus with the headache. Like I said, I'll be fine in a few days."

"Desk duty for the rest of the week. Or you can just take the time off."

"Sir, I'm fine. Let me go out in the field."

He shakes his head, "I need a doctor's note."

"I have an appointment tomorrow."

"And you still have a headache. I can't have you distracted while out there."

"Fine," she sighs, knowing he wouldn't give in. Castle follows her out of the office.

"Hey," Ryan calls as she approaches her desk. "You seen Esposito? I just found something that might lead us to Sara Moore's killer, and he's suddenly disappeared."

"He went to lunch with Lanie. Call him, and tell him to get back to work," she orders. "Can I see?"

"Sure," Ryan hands over the folder and calls his partner.

"The boyfriend? I thought he had a solid alibi," Castle says, looking over her shoulder.

"Bring him in. I want to interrogate him."

**A/N: So I'm sorry again for not replying to reviews. I was having some computer issues earlier and was trying to actually study for my finals. I will try my best to reply this time. Three more chapters to go... I will try to post Tuesday sometime. Please keep reviewing. Thanks.**


	13. Following Up on a Threat

**Chapter 13: Following Up on a Threat**

"Kate, what are you afraid of?" Lanie asks, pulling up outside Castle's apartment building. "Just give in to him, Kate. You already told him that you love him, and he feels the same way. I'm sure it's going to be incredible so just… enjoy it. You two are meant to be."

"We'll get there, Lanie. I'm just waiting until the time is right. Preferably when I'm totally healed."

"Fine. But you better give me all the details."

"You'll be the first to know, Lanie," she assures her friend.

"So it's not going to happen in a public place where fans can take pictures?" Lanie grins.

"God no."

"You coming in after your appointment tomorrow?"

"Yeah. The boyfriend confessed, but he wouldn't rat on his pals."

"The ones that hurt you and stole the evidence?" Kate nods. "I'm sure you'll get it out of him tomorrow. One night in jail can be pretty effective."

"See you tomorrow," she smiles at her friend before getting out of the car.

"I hope everything goes well tomorrow morning."

"I'm fine, Lanie," Kate says, shutting the door and heading into the building. During the elevator ride, she pulls out the key Castle had given her earlier. The elevator doors open, and she makes her way toward his door. Stepping away from it, she frowns and freezes; the door is ajar, and it isn't like Castle or his family to leave it open. As she pulls her gun out, she thinks for a moment about who would be home: surely Castle is as well as Alexis, but she has no idea about Martha, who she had only seen once during her stay.

Turning the safety off, she heads in. The living room and kitchen are clear, and she tries to move as quietly as possible as she approaches the bedroom and his office. The bedroom too is lacking people. She cautiously approaches his office, listening outside it for a moment but not hearing anything. She takes a deep breath to calm herself before kicking in the door. The first thing she sees is a masked man raising a gun at Castle. She shoots before she can hesitate.

The man falls to the ground. Kate turns her attention to Castle, duct taped to his chair and wiggled frantically. She pulls the piece of his mouth, and before she can even get a word out, he is talking. "There was another one. I think he went upstairs. Alexis is up there."

She understands him perfectly; she has to keep anything from happening to Alexis. She raises her gun again and heads to the stairs, hoping that her gunshot hadn't provoked the second attacker into hurting the teenager. Seeing no one in the hallway, she immediately heads to Alexis's bedroom to search for them. She nudges the door open, ready to shoot if she should need to.

"Put the gun down, or I kill her," the masked man yells. He's got his arm around her shoulders to hold her to him, and a gun pressed into her side.

Kate can't get a clear shot at him because he is using Alexis as a shield. "You don't want to do that," she tries to talk him down, taking a step into the room.

"I mean it. You wouldn't want be the one to cause her dad so much pain, would you?" he counters, pushing the gun harder against her.

"Her dad's dead," she tries to lie. Alexis looks up at her, shocked. A few tears trail down her cheek, and Kate feels bad for lying.

"No, he isn't. I only heard one gunshot. If my partner had killed him, you would have killed my partner. Two gunshots, not one."

"Who says I needed a gun to kill him?" she edges closer to them.

"Why use something else when you have a gun?"

"Let her go. It's me you want, not her."

"Put the gun down."

"Then let her go. You do that, I come with you, no struggling and no tricks. You can… do whatever you want to me, now that we have your boss," Kate holds her hands up, her gun now pointing to the ceiling to show her compliance.

"I think I'd rather have this one," he smiles and turns his gun on the detective. "Now get out of the way."

"I can't do that," she says calmly, giving Alexis the slightest of nods.

The teenager hesitates for just a split second before kicking her captor with as much force as she can muster. He pulls the trigger accidentally in shock as he goes to grab himself. Alexis manages to throw herself to the ground, and Beckett fires twice, hitting the masked man square in the chest with both bullets.

As he falls to the ground, Kate takes a deep breath and closes her eyes, lowering her gun to her side. Alexis crashes into her, and she stumbles backward a few steps, trying to regain her balance. "It's okay," she whispers, putting her arms around the girl.

"Is he really…?" she can't bring herself to say it as she draws back to look at the detective.

"He's fine. Duct taped to a chair but fine."

"Thank you, Kate," Alexis whispers, hugging her as tightly as she can.

Both woman look up when another pair of arms wraps around them. Castle smiles at them, "You're both okay?"

"We're fine."

The teenager lets go of her so that she can hug her father. He wraps his arms around her, somewhat reluctant to let go of Kate. "Why all the bullets?" he asks over his daughter's shoulder.

Kate nods to the one embedded in the wall, "That was his. Alexis threw his aim off. The other two were mine."

"Thank god you both are okay."

She nods again, "I've got to take care of this. Why don't you two go downstairs?" Once they have done so, she calls Montgomery. After checking that each attacker is dead and collecting their weapons, she joins the Castles on the couch. "How'd you get free?"

"I've been duct taped to a chair before."

"Research?"

He nods, "I just couldn't try to get free while he was watching me."

"You two can go to my apartment. Everything should be fixed by now, and it's been released."

"What about you?" Alexis asks quietly.

"There were four men the night I was attacked, and only two came tonight. I've still got two more to track down."

"Kate, Montgomery said you were on desk duty for the rest of the week at least. He's not going to let you do this," Castle argues.

"They came after you because of me. I still pushed for us to solve this case despite their threats. I failed to make sure you two would be protected. You both could have died tonight because of me. I'm not backing down on this one."

"Kate, he pulled you off your mother's case, which was far more important to you. He's going to do it again; let everyone else handle it."

"Maybe the other two went back to the precinct," Alexis suggests. "Maybe they tried to steal the new evidence you guys found against the boyfriend."

"Montgomery didn't say they had."

Ryan and Esposito come in through the open door, "Everyone's okay?"

"Yeah."

"You said there were two here?" Ryan asks, looking to Beckett. She nods. "Two more went to the prison to try to break their friend out. Guards caught them and are sending them back to us."

"Good."

**A/N: One final down... three to go. I just want to go home. And I totally want to take a nap... maybe I will before dinner and more studying. So Castle was pretty good last night. My friend could actually watch it with me, but my roommate was going to go to bed so we had to search for another TV to use. Not so fun during finals week. We ended up in the workout room. Everyone probably thought we were crazy. And then it turns out my roommate didn't go to bed; her friend came over and they watched gameshows. Anyway... hope you enjoyed the episode and this chapter. Two more to go.**


	14. Believing

**Chapter 14: Believing**

"So?" Castle looks at her expectantly as she comes out to the waiting room. She had refused to let him go back with her.

"He said there isn't any permanent damage."

"And the headaches?"

"Should go away. But he says that sometimes it can last for months."

"Can he make any guess as to when?"

"Nope."

"Did he clear you for field work?" he asks, hoping for at least some good news.

"Nope. He wants me to come back next week, and then maybe he'll let me."

"So are we going in today?"

"No. He suggested taking a few more days off before going back in to do paperwork."

Castle stands and holds her coat up for her to put on, "What would you like to do today then, Detective?"

"I don't know."

"There's really nothing you want to do?"

"Look, Rick, you're being really sweet and all, but don't you have work to do?"

"No. You are my work."

She sighs, "You know I hate that."

"What? I didn't call you my muse. Besides, I've written over half the next book, and it's not due for another few months. I've got plenty of time. So what do you want to do?"

"Castle…"

"Anything you want, Kate. Please. Unless your head hurts too bad and you want to go home and rest."

"Sit in bed for another day?" she looks at him skeptically.

"Didn't think so. So where are we headed?"

Kate bites her lip nervously, "I kind of… want to visit my mother's grave. Dad and I always go on her birthday and on the day she died, and it's kind of in between the two right now. But you don't have to come with me when I do that."

"No, if that's what you want to do, we'll go there."

"Are you sure? You probably don't want to see me like that, Castle."

"Kate, I'm going with you. No, I don't like to see you upset, but I want to be there with you."

She nods, "Okay."

"Would you like to stop and get flowers on the way?"

"That'd be nice."

He leads her to the car but hesitates at the passenger door of his car, "Do you… want to drive?"

She looks at him for a moment before shaking her head, "You go ahead."

Half an hour later they are inside a florist shop a couple blocks from the cemetery. Castle follows her around as she tries to choose flowers. She finally turns to him, "I don't know anything about flowers, Castle. Dad normally takes care of the flowers, and they always look wonderful, but I don't know."

"Well… I don't know much about flowers either. Except women seem to like them. So let's go talk to the florist." Ten minutes later they are leaving the shop. Castle had insisted on paying for the flowers and had two extra boxes.

She frowns at him as they walk to the car, "Please tell you didn't spend that much. Three boxes, Castle?"

"Relax, Kate. Two of them are for later. And don't worry about how much money I spend; I make millions, Kate." He puts the two boxes in the car before putting a hand on her back to lead her to the cemetery. Once inside, he lets her guide him to the right grave. He hands her the box and removes his coat, laying it on the ground in front of the gravestone so that she can kneel down on it without getting full of snow.

She kneels down on his coat to arrange the flowers, and he tries to back away to give her some privacy. She turns back to him after a moment, then pats the coat beside her. He quickly joins her, trying not to make her feel uncomfortable. Once they have arranged the flowers, they sit back to admire their work.

Rick glances at her, seeing the tear tracks on her cheeks. He rests a hand on top of hers, trying to control his urge to pull her close to him and never let her go. "She'd be proud of you," he whispers.

She gives him a soft smile and wipes at the tears with her sleeve, "She'd like you, Rick. It's too bad you can't meet her."

They stay there silently for a few more minutes. She moves to stand, and he lets her go, joining her seconds later as he pulls his coat back on. She stares down at the gravestone for a full thirty seconds before turning to walk away. He follows a couple paces behind her. Suddenly she turns back around to face him and throws her arms around him.

He wraps his arms around her, drawing her as close as possible. "It's okay to miss her, Kate," he tells her, rubbing her back as she trembles with the tears that are falling.

Eventually she pulls her head back from being buried in his neck. "Thank you, Rick. For everything," she leans in to give him a gentle kiss. "I'm so grateful that I have you in my life."

He wipes at the tears on her cheek with his thumb, "Nothing can ever make me stop loving you, Kate."

"I'll always love you too," she kisses him again.

He lets this one last longer than the first but still keeps it short. "We don't need any more fan pictures spreading," he explains at her questioning look. "Come on. Let's go back to your place."

"Castle?"

"Yes?"

"You could have any girl in the world. Why me?"

"Because you're extraordinary, Kate. All the other girls… well, they each have a couple good qualities. But you… you're everything in one. You're more than I could ever have asked for, Kate."

"I guess soul mates could exist…" she gives him a soft smile.

"And do you believe we are soul mates?"

"I… don't know. It doesn't seem logical for us to work so well together, but… we do. And I wouldn't have it any other way."

**A/N: Sorry for not updating yesterday. I kind of forgot with the whole zoology final and coming home thing. So... one more chapter to go. Hope you enjoyed this one. Please review.**


	15. A New Normal

**Chapter 15: A New Normal**

"Alexis just called. She wants to spend the night at a friend's; she didn't want you to be offended or anything, but she thought we needed some privacy, and she said it might help her with what happened last night. I told her it was okay," Castle hands her a glass of wine.

"She's your daughter, Castle. What she does has nothing to do with me."

"She'd listen to you if you told her what to do."

"She's listens to everyone, Castle."

"Not strangers. Or I least I hope not."

"You've taught her well," she smiles gently.

"So I guess it's just the two of us," he wraps his arm around her, pulling her closer to him. "You want to do something? Watch a movie… go out to dinner… anything?"

"We already went out for lunch, Castle."

"And you're not hungry for dinner?"

"Not really. We didn't eat until like two o'clock, and it's only six now."

"Then what are we going to do all evening?"

"If we watch a movie, I think you'll be watching me more than the TV."

He smiles, "Probably true."

"And I would like to know why you had so many boxes of flowers earlier," she looks over at him questioningly. "But if you don't want to share that…" she takes a sip of wine.

"That's not going to make your head hurt more, is it?" he gestures to the wine.

"One glass will be fine."

"I bought you flowers."

"You didn't have to."

"I wanted to," he removes his arm from around her so that he can retrieve the boxes of flowers. He hands her one of the boxes, which she opens to find a single purple rose.

"I assume you're going to explain this to me because I told you earlier I know nothing about flowers."

"Yeah, I may have lied about that. But I really only know roses. So the single purple rose means beauty. Purple is also indicative of enchantment and love at first sight. And I definitely have had feelings for you since that first time I saw you at my book party."

She blushes slightly at his words, "Castle…"

"Don't say anything, Kate," he gently tells her, handing her the other box. Inside are eleven deep red roses. "I'm sure you know that red means I love you. And eleven because I want you to know that this is real. I truly do love you, Kate, and I'm not going to leave you."

"I love you too, Rick," she takes his hands, pulling him down so that she can kiss him. As she deepens the kiss, he allows his hands to wander under her shirt so he can caress the soft skin of her stomach. She pushes him backward so that he is lying down and she is on top of him.

"Kate, are you sure about this?" he whispers between kisses. "We really don't have to do this now."

Kate pulls back to look in his eyes, "I'm sure, Rick. This is what I want. Just make sure we get to the bedroom first."

"I can't make any promises. Especially when you've got me pinned on your couch," he smiles, leaning up to kiss her again.

"Like you can't do anything about that."

"I have to make sure you don't hit your head."

Very reluctantly she climbs off of him, standing up so that he too can get up. Once he is up, she attaches her lips to his again, her fingers moving to the buttons on his shirt. Her hands run up and down his now naked chest.

He pulls her sweater over her head and takes advantage of her now exposed skin. He kisses down her neck to her collarbone, one hand tangled in her hair and the other rubbing patterns on her back.

They awkwardly make their way to her bedroom without letting go of each other.

**CB**

"Good morning," Castle smiles at her as she comes into the kitchen and passes her a cup of coffee. It has been a week since their first night together, and they had now moved back to the Castle loft.

She smiles at both him and Alexis, joining them at the island for breakfast, "Morning."

He passes her a plate with a bagel that had just popped out of the toaster, "No calls yet?"

"You're forgetting that I have to go to the doctor today; I'm not yet cleared for field work. They wouldn't call me anyway."

"That's at nine-thirty?"

"Yes."

"Well, I better head to school. I don't want to be late," Alexis says, giving each of them a hug before heading out the door.

"We've got over an hour before we have to leave. Would you care to join me for a shower?" he grins mischievously.

"Castle, I just showered. I've already gotten dressed and put on makeup and did my hair. No, I would not like to join you."

He frowns at her, "You're mean."

"And yet you still like me," she smiles at him, accepting the bottle of pain medication from him as she finishes putting cream cheese on her bagel. She freezes, staring at the bottle with a slight frown.

"Is something wrong?" he asks, worried.

Kate looks up at him, "My head doesn't hurt."

It takes him a few moments to comprehend this. "Really? Not even the slightest bit?"

"No. It's… back to normal."

Ecstatic, Rick comes around the counter to hug her. He presses a sweet kiss to her lips, "I'm so glad you're okay again."

"I was fine before, Castle."

"Yes, but now you're back to normal again. And you can go back to work and everything will be okay."

She smiles lightly, "Not everything is back to normal."

"What?" he looks around, worried that he is missing something.

"Us."

"Oh…"

Kate kisses him again, "But it's okay. I think I like this better than how things were before."

"Me too," he deepens the kiss. "You sure you don't want to join me?" he tries to entice her.

She rolls her eyes, "Positive. Or we'll be late for my appointment. But I'll make it up to you tonight."

**A/N: So everything turned out all right in the end... or better than all right. Well, another story comes to a close. Really hope you liked it. I'm thinking I might start posting my next one tomorrow. I think I've had it written since like Thanksgiving but I wanted to get other stuff up first because this one doesn't really have a time frame. And I'm working on another one right now that has to do with Knockdown. I thought I'd try to write one about that episode since I liked it so much. And I can't wait for Countdown tomorrow. So... please let me know what you thought of this. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this.**


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